Washington: Under a rule the Biden administration proposed on Monday, women whose employers have chosen to forego covering contraceptives under their health insurance plans on religious grounds would have free access to birth control.

The Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare, mandates that private insurance plans provide recommended preventive services, such as contraception, without requiring patients to pay a copayment. However, current regulations allow exceptions for moral or religious reasons.

According to a statement from the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), women enrolled in ACA-compliant plans would receive birth control coverage regardless of employer exemptions if the new rule is put into effect.

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The goal of today's proposed rule is to protect the tens of millions of women who have benefited from and will continue to benefit from the ACA nationwide. It tells women all over the nation that we have their backs, according to HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra.

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According to current regulations, people who are enrolled in health insurance plans that do not cover contraception due to ethical or religious reasons can only get access to contraceptive services through a type of accommodation that employers are free to refuse.
In accordance with the new regulation, a provider would provide contraception to an employee at no cost and would be compensated by an insurer after receiving government-issued credit.

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The rule would also keep religious exemptions from coverage in place while eliminating employer moral objections as an excuse.